US officials have put 2,000 troops on standby to be “ready to deploy” to the Middle East should they be needed inside Israel.
Iran has issued a warning that they will take “pre-emptive action” against Israel in the “coming hours” which comes as the Israeli military are preparing for a full scale ground offensive inside Gaza.
Iran’s Foreign Minister, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian has warned Israel on Friday that if the bombing in Gaza does not stop then a wider “axis will respond.”
Amir-Abdollahian said, “The possibility of pre-emptive action by the resistance axis is expected in the coming hours.”
He added that Arab leaders will not allow Israel “to do whatever it wants in Gaza.”
Read more on Israel-Hamas war:
Israeli military ‘are preparing for the continuation of war’ which will be on two fronts between Hamas and Hezbollah
“All options are open” to the so-called resistance front to respond to Israel’s “war crimes”, foreign minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said.
“The resistance front is capable of waging a long-term war with the enemy… in the coming hours, we can expect a pre-emptive action by the resistance front.
“Leaders of the resistance will not allow the Zionist regime to take any action in Gaza.”
He added: “All options are open and we cannot be indifferent to the war crimes committed against the people of Gaza.”
The 2,000 US troops reportedly selected by the Pentagon are prepared for deployment to help the Israeli Defence Force (IDF) for their ground offensive by providing advice and medical support.
A White House official said, “This morning, President Biden and Vice President Harris were briefed by their national security team on the latest updates in the wake of Hamas’s abhorrent attack in Israel and the resulting conflict in Gaza.
“Chief of Staff Jeff Zients joined the briefing led by National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, and Director of the Central Intelligence Agency Bill Burns.”
